Most marketers have realised by now that they have to swap from the classic communication approach of sending & advertising to an approach based on content. But for most people the exact meaning of that is rather intangible.

A good content marketing plan contains a number of different elements including theme, audience, tone, publishing channel, etc. But how do all of these components come together to form a cohesive strategy?

What is the secret behind social media content marketing that takes content and publishes and promotes it on social networks including Blogs, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn? What are the 10 fundamental principles that will help make it effective?

Robin Good: The Institute for the Future and the University of Phoenix have teamed up to produce, this past spring, an interesting report entitled Future Work Skills 2020.

By looking at the set of emerging skills that this research identifies as vital for future workers, I can't avoid but recognize the very skillset needed by any professional curator or newsmaster.

It should only come as a limited surprise to realize that in an information economy, the most valuable skills are those that can harness that primary resource, "information", in new, and immediately useful ways.

And being the nature of information like water, which can adapt and flow depending on context, the task of the curator is one of seeing beyond the water,

to the unique rare fish swimming through it.

The curator's key talent being the one of recognizing that depending on who you are fishing for, the kind of fish you and other curators could see within the same water pool, may be very different.

Here the skills that information-fishermen of the future will need the most:

1) Sense-making:

ability to determine the deeper meaning or significance of what is being expressed

2) Social intelligence:

ability to connect to others in a deep and direct way, to sense and stimulate reactions and desired interactions

3) Novel and adaptive thinking:

proficiency at thinking and coming up with solutions and responses beyond that which is rote or rule-based

4) Cross-cultural competency:

ability to operate in different cultural settings

5) Computational thinking:

ability to translate vast amounts of data into abstract concepts and to understand data-based reasoning

6) New media literacy:

ability to critically assess and develop content that uses new media forms, and to leverage these media for persuasive communication

7) Transdisciplinarity:

literacy in and ability to understand concepts across multiple disciplines

8) Design mindset:

ability to represent and develop tasks and work processes for desired outcomes

9) Cognitive load management:

ability to discriminate and filter information for importance, and to understand how to maximize cognitive functioning using a variety of tools and techniques

10) Virtual collaboration:

ability to work productively, drive engagement, and demonstrate presence as a member of a virtual team

Thanks for sharing this from Robin's stream. These skills sets could form the basis of a self-assessment for would-be curators, although they're more conceptual - than practical/tactical. Thanks for sharing and must go rescoop it with a credit you and Robin of course

What do memes have to do with content marketing? With digital media increasingly emphasizing the visual . . . Everything. Gerry Praysman, “Buzz Marketer” at Brainshark explains why, in an interview with CMI News reporter Christine Dunn.

Content creators are often inspired by their surroundings when developing ideas for their social media profiles, but their content strategy is the guiding principle that makes it all work. Maybe that...

This a great blog post from Rian van der Merwe , describing the noise you can find on the web now, and especially content just created for SEO purposes or advertisers. As many, Rian is tired of it.

"I used to believe that if you write with passion and clarity about a topic you know well (or want to know more about), you will find and build an audience. I believed that maybe, if you’re smart about it, you could find a way for some part of that audience to pay you money to sustain whatever obsession drove you to self-publishing"

Creating a two-way conversation dynamic with your readers is not difficult or beyond your marketing budget: two examples from Google and Etsy demonstrate how you can spark reader interest and ignite dialog by appealing to their inherent curiousity...

Sharing your scoops to your social media accounts is a must to distribute your curated content. Not only will it drive traffic and leads through your content, but it will help show your expertise with your followers.

Integrating your curated content to your website or blog will allow you to increase your website visitors’ engagement, boost SEO and acquire new visitors. By redirecting your social media traffic to your website, Scoop.it will also help you generate more qualified traffic and leads from your curation work.

Distributing your curated content through a newsletter is a great way to nurture and engage your email subscribers will developing your traffic and visibility.
Creating engaging newsletters with your curated content is really easy.